Rate Debate Heats Up Among Fed Officials

Before Yellen Testimony, Central Bank's Hawks and Doves Talk Timing

By

Jon Hilsenrath and

Michael S. Derby

July 11, 2014 6:11 p.m. ET

A debate is intensifying among the Federal Reserve's regional bank presidents about whether to push interest rates up from zero sooner than planned because of recent improvements in the U.S. job market, potentially signaling a broader discussion that could change the rate outlook.

Most Fed officials at June's policy meeting didn't see rate increases until 2015, according to projections made before the Labor Department reported that the jobless rate fell to 6.1% in June, down 1.4 percentage points from a year ago. Fed...